A spokesperson for Social Development Minister Paula Bennett says there is "no way" a beneficiary would be prevented from purchasing tampons and sanitary pads with a Work and Income-supplied payment card.
Author and blogger Tulia Thompson this morning claimed she knew of two women who had been told they couldn't buy the products using the cards. According to Ms Thompson, one friend was told this by a WINZ case manager, and the other made the discovery at the supermarket checkout.
"She tried to use a WINZ supermarket card at the check-out at her local supermarket, and the card didn't work," Ms Thompson wrote on her blog. "The cashier called WINZ to find out why the card wouldn’t work, and found out it was because she had tampons amongst the items she was purchasing. She had to return them."
But spokesperson for Ms Bennett Sia Aston told 3 News the cards do not automatically block purchases.
"There is absolutely no way that those payment cards could stop you buying tampons and pads," she says. "It's not technically possible – the card wouldn't stop that purchase being made."
If a cardholder was prevented from making a purchase, it was likely an employee failed to understand the rules around the cards, she says.
"The staff at supermarkets and stores around the country – and there are very many, many thousands who can take a payment card – have really clear guidelines around what they cannot be used for, and they are essentially cigarettes and alcohol…It's just not possible that a sale was blocked."
She says if women find themselves unable to purchase necessary items, they should contact WINZ immediately.
"There's been no change to the policy, and there's absolutely no way that tampons and pads are deemed as luxury items that you can't purchase with a payment card."
The Government introduced the payment card scheme in 2011.
3 News
source: newshub archive
